Extension.... is it worth the hassle?

[mummydummyabc]

We have been contemplating doing an over garage extension for a couple of years now. It would give us a 4th main bedroom with an en-suite. As it stands at the moment we have 2 reasonable size bedrooms and a very small single bedroom. I just worry about the chaos of builders in our house. Is it worth the trouble? Anyone been through a similar process? How was it for you?

Yep we do houses up all the time. My hubby does all the work so it's even worse chaos as he also has a full time job! If you get a builder in rather than do it yourself then you'll be fine, the messy bit is knocking through the rest is ok, and good builders will be very careful during the knocking through.

My dd had a substantial kitchen extension done when she had two little ones under 2.

Yes, it was a PITA at the time, but luckily the builders didn’t dawdle so it didn’t drag on too long - and it has utterly transformed her formerly limited downstairs space, so certainly well worth the hassle.

I plan to do just this in the next five years. All building work will create an element of mess, but hopefully most of yours will be fairly contained until the builders have to knock through.

Always look for a builder who is happy to include timelines in the contract and look to implement financial penalties should the work go over. A neighbour has recently had a fairly simple ground floor kitchen extension and their builders have been hopeless at working to timelines, work began in July and it's still not completed!!

We did it years ago. Total transformation of the house.

Recommend though having one builder who project manages the lot. All the trades they use will turn on in time and deliver for their builder. If it's you alone they have no loyalty and you will be on diazepam within weeks

Definitely what Marnie says about getting a builder who will do everything. Mine subcontracted a lot but that was the bit that ran the smoothest.
In terms of upheaval, bedrooms are the easiest, then bathrooms.
Kitchens are a pain unless you are lucky enough to be doing such a bit project that you can add an entire new kitchen before you rip out the old one.
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